G13 was a turning point for UMNO’s political history
When people run short of ideas, they reach out for other things.There’s money, the first crutch of all fools. For all those who lack self esteem, the first argument is: If I had enough money, I could have done it. This is untrue. Money can make nothing happen unless you will it. And you can will nothing without a precise premise, a strategy or game plan that you have clearly thought through. In short, an idea. Without the idea, without the intellectual or emotional muscle that goes with that idea, any idle dream based only on the availability of money is always doomed. That’s why angel investors do due diligence. Not only of the idea to invest in but also of the person who will deliver it. Does he or she have the grit, gumption, dedication and leadership? Or the persistence to see the idea through its initial days when all that can go wrong always does, following Murphy’s Law?
the most important steps that should be taken by Umno was to give extra focus on the aspirations and needs of the middle-class Malays. For that,Umno should prepare a more inclusive framework for the group.appointing Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani as the minister for Federal Territory Minister. the number of middle-class Malays are increasing and they mustn’t be sidelined by Umno.“The aspirations and expectations of these middle-class Malays also differ from the aspirations and expectations of the rural community and other groups,” Johari told his voters At the same time, said Umno must also continue reaching out to other races, including the Chinese, so that it will not be seen as an unfriendly Malay party. “Umno must find ways to maintain racial harmony in the country,” he said.
The other crutch, very popular in Malaysia, is connections. Most people think they can achieve anything if only they had a godfather to see them through. The truth is, much as we may like to believe the opposite, few success stories of modern Malaysia have anything to do with godfathers. Except in politics and business, where it has been a tradition to mentor heirs from within the family. So it’s tough to break in. It’s far simpler to go out and make your own road. To do that, the first important step is to stop looking for godfathers. Mentor yourself. The rich uncle will always come to you once you have demonstrated your ability to deliver on your own promise. But if you hang around him hoping he will give you the first break, be sure that he will soon start avoiding you.
The third crutch is fate. We believe so much in it that we spend the best years of our life chasing those who pretend they can predict it. Fortune telling is big business out here and there’s a large contingent of charlatans who make their money telling us how we must live our life, what coloured stones to wear, which God to pray to, and on what days we ought to fast. The same person who is vegetarian five days a week to appease a certain God is also ready to slaughter a hapless animal to please another God on another occasion. We would rather go with what others tell us to do than follow our own heart. We are not ready to think through our own solutions. We need intermediaries to advise us on how to live, how to invest, how to seduce luck. Curiously, the richer people become, the more they depend on fake gurus and fraudulent fortune tellers.
This is what r exactly Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani said: “If this functionary is to carry out the duties – and his duties, I submit, are far more important than the duties even of the judiciary he should have been certainly as independent as the Judiciary. But, comparing the Articles about the Supreme Court and the Articles relating to the Auditor General, I cannot help saying that we have not given him the same independence which we have given to the Judiciary, although I personally feel that he ought to have far greater independence than the Judiciary itself.”
n 1992, Francis Fukuyama, famous American political scientist wrote The End of History and the Last Man. Fukuyama argued that the worldwide spread of liberal democracies in the late nineties marks the end point of humanity’s socio-cultural evolution. He was referring mainly to the collapse of communism. It may be an exaggeration to call this The End of History. But the year 1989 which saw the dismantling of the Berlin Wall was no doubt a radical turning point in global history. It heralded the dominance of democracies, and the triumph of Washington in the Cold War between the American and Soviet blocs
The perfect society is an imperfect lie. Those who sell it to us do so with the clear intent to manipulate. And when we buy into that dream, we do so knowing fully well that we are buying a Chinese-make fake. But, as in the movies, there’s a wilful suspension of disbelief that makes the trade possible. The buyer is aware he is buying into a lie. The seller knows he is selling a dud. But the conviction with which the seller sells the lie is matched only by the credulity of the buyer.
In politics this happens all the time. We hated the Left Front so much, not for what it did but what it did not do for Kelantan despite ruling for three decades, that we wilfully chose to buy into the belief that PAS will usher in real, tangible change, revive the true glory of KELANTAN. Did we trust the idea? Did we think it was actually possible? I doubt it. We are not so gullible. This nation has lived with disillusionment for decades. But yes, we desperately needed hope and PAS appeared to symbolise that. So we bought into that symbolism. Eleven months later, we have had enough of her. Not just PASl but Malaysia seems sick and tired of her endless tantrums. The only change Kelantan has seen is the hustlers hanging around the Left have migrated to Singapore.The problem is: We do not want change. We love to kick out those who fail. It gives us a sense of power. Then we have a brief honeymoon with the successor which soon gives way to despair and rage. Never do we make a serious effort to seek out people or parties with a genuine agenda for transforming India. Everyone knows exactly what the problems are. But when elections come, we celebrate the tamasha. Politics today is just another form of entertainment. We love the rush of adrenaline in our blood, the buzz, the excitement, the thrill of watching celebrities beg for votes. Beyond that, there’s no serious thought. Reforms haven’t taken place for five years now. And I doubt anything will happen in the next two.
What we are missing out on is opportunity. A nation all set for stardom has opted to limp along because you and I get carried away by the glitter of politics, not the tough, difficult business of making Malaysia better.
